MANDAN, ND — Hundreds of mourners came together Monday at Mandan High School to remember two teenagers killed in an October 2 crash that authorities have linked to other vehicles believed to be street racing.
The joint funeral Mass honored Taylor Fisher and Benjamin Moch, both Mandan High School students. The service was held in the Starion Bank Gymnasium, where the crowd filled the space in a public show of grief for the pair and their families.
Photos from the service showed the Rev. Josh Waltz placing crosses on the caskets as the Mass began. Attendees listened to readings and watched as the ceremony moved through a difficult moment for the school community.
School gym becomes a place of mourning for classmates and neighbors
The choice of Mandan High School for the service brought the tragedy close to home for students, teachers and neighbors who knew the teens. The gymnasium, usually a place for games and school events, was transformed into a venue for remembrance.
Many in attendance appeared to be classmates, family members and community residents gathered to support the two families. The large turnout reflected how widely the deaths had affected Mandan, where the teens were part of the high school community.
The service also underscored how quickly a local tragedy can move from police response to shared public mourning. By Monday, the crash had already become a defining loss for the school and for the broader Mandan community.
Crash investigation has centered on suspected street racing
Authorities say the teens were killed in a crash that has been tied to other vehicles believed to have been street racing. The collision occurred on October 2, and the funeral came 10 days later.
That detail has shaped public reaction to the deaths, adding anger and shock to the grief felt by the families and school community. While the Mass focused on remembrance, the circumstances of the crash remained part of the story surrounding the loss.
The Bismarck area collision drew attention because it was not treated as an ordinary traffic death. Instead, the crash has been associated with dangerous driving behavior involving other vehicles, according to the information shared about the case.
Taylor Fisher and Benjamin Moch remembered side by side
The two students were mourned together during the service, a reflection of how closely their lives and deaths became linked in the community’s memory. Their caskets were present at the Mass, and the ceremony was organized as a shared farewell.
Family and friends gathered to honor both teens at once, rather than through separate services. That joint tribute gave the crowd a single place to grieve and remember the pair as students whose lives ended in the same crash.
The public nature of the service made the loss visible to the whole community. For many in attendance, the day was as much about standing with the families as it was about saying goodbye to the two teenagers.
The Rev. Josh Waltz leads a solemn Catholic rite
The Mass was led by the Rev. Josh Waltz, who carried out the funeral service before the packed gymnasium. One of the most visible moments came when he placed crosses on the caskets of Fisher and Moch.
That gesture marked the teens’ caskets during the ceremony and gave the service a clear ritual focus. The readings, prayers and symbols of the Mass framed the gathering as both a religious observance and a communal act of mourning.
In a setting filled with students, relatives and friends, the priest’s role helped guide the crowd through a service that was heavy with loss. The ritual offered structure for a moment that many in the room were likely struggling to process.
A community marked by grief after a violent October loss
The funeral came at a time when Mandan was still absorbing the impact of the October 2 crash and its aftermath. For the school and the town, the deaths of two teenagers created a painful focal point for collective grief.
The large turnout showed that the loss reached beyond the teens’ immediate families. It touched classmates, faculty, friends and residents who came to honor them and to witness the service together.
As the community continues to cope with the crash, the funeral Mass stood as one of the first major public moments of remembrance. It also highlighted the human cost behind the investigation into the vehicles believed to have been street racing.